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Letters to the Government
Seventh graders examine how to be active participants in their local, state, or federal governments. They create a powerpoint presentation and write a letter to one of their governmental representatives about a problem and solution of...
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U.S. Constitution Roll Call Test
Students act as if they are newspaper reporters from 1787 and they are to interview the signers of the Constitution. Teachers help guide students in what to ask the signers.
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Documents and Symbols and American Freedom
Students complete a unit of lessons on the documents, symbols, and famous people involved in the founding of the U.S. government. They create a personal bill of rights, write a found poem, design a flag, conduct research, and role-play...
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A More Perfect Union
Fourth graders complete a unit of lessons on the development of the U.S. government. They examine the main ideas of the Declaration of Independence, develop a class translation of the preamble to the Constitution, create a flow chart,...
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Legal Rights, the Charter, and Canada's Constitution
Students explore the issue of human rights in Canada and compare and contrast the Bill of Rights and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. They debate whether Canadians are giving up certain democratic rights in exchange for the greater good.
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Understanding Procedural Justice
Young scholars analyze procedural justice by identifying unfair decisions by ruler in play, stating procedural guarantees that a Bill of Rights should include, and comparing their list of guarantees to those provided by the U.S....
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The Preamble to the Constitution
Students discuss key phrases from the Preamble of the Constitution, find ways to relate the values stated in the Preamble to their daily lives, and explore possible changes needed in the Constitution by future generations of citizens.
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Reflections on Judicial Power - Part I
Students research the Constitutional provision for the Judicial branch of government. They examine different U.S. founder's positions on the relative strength of the judicial branch and act as a review court for Marbury vs. Madison.
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Constitutional Issues: Watergate and the Constitution
Students take and defend positions on what conditions contribute to the establishment and maintenance of a constitutional government. They debate whether or not the government should have prosecuted Nixon over the Watergate scandal.
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United States Pride
Third graders learn the responsibility of citizenship and learn facts about a state they choose to research.
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Slavery in the U.S. Constitution
Students examine five sections of the U.S. Constitution to see what the Federal Government has said about slavery, past and present. Then, class members research individuals and interest groups who directly impacted slavery compromises.
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Taking A Stand - Rules and Laws
Students explore the purpose of rules and laws in society, as well as some of the basic tenets of the Constitution that address equal rights for all citizens. Next, they examine historical examples of segregation and consider its impact...
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We The People
Students consider the main concepts of the Preamble of the United States Constitution They research different issues explored in the Constitution which have both historic and modern connections.
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Justice in America
Students use the Preamble to the Constitution as the central resource, to consider the concept of justice in the United States, from past times to the present. Thoughtful questions are posed and helpful hand-outs provided.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Lesson 2: Chief Executives Compared: The Federalist Papers
Fix the Articles of Confederation or develop a new constitution? That was the question facing the Founding Fathers. Several of those in favor of a new constitution published a series of essays, collected in the Federalist...
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Safety Up in the Air
Students explore the controversy over a bill giving pilots the option to become armed federal law enforcement officers. They brainstorm other possible security measures for airplanes and airports.
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First Amendment Guarantee of Free Speech (Senior, Social Studies)
Students receive a list of banned books from which they choose one to read. They read their chosen book and write a paper that includes a discussion of the First Amendment and its guarantees and the reason(s) why they believe their book...
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The U.S. Constitutional Tradition
Students study the Constitution and then in an interactive group activity create a "Second Constitutional Convention" specifically designed to evaluate and trim down the number of amendments.
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Decoding Strategies
Young readers apply decoding strategies to identify unknown words. In this reading activity, they read the Preamble and practice using decoding strategies. Small groups rotate to five charts that have questions regarding the Constitution...
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Age of Enlightenment
Studnets compare example of primary documents that have shaped U.S. government and our Constitution.
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Government is News: Studying the Constitution
Sixth graders explore the United States Constitution. In this social studies lesson, learners discover how a bill is made into law, study the election process, and identify specific elements of the Bill of Rights.
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Loyalists
Students explain why some colonists remained loyal to England during the American revolution. In this social studies lesson, students write a letter to an editor about their reasons for remaining loyal to England.
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Password
Students identify vocabulary words from the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. In this vocabulary lesson plan, students are given clues and say the word from the clues.
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Checks and Balances
Students take a closer look at the responsibilities of the Legislative, Judicial, and Executive branches. In this U.S. government lesson, students read articles 1, 2, and 3 of the Constitution and then use Venn diagrams to compare and...